DFD Firefighters, DPD Captain Honored At PSC Meeting
Firefighters Honored For Assisting Police
Seven firefighters received unit citations for their efforts to assist Dalton Police Department officers during an incident earlier this month. The firefighters from Engine 2/A and Squad 1/A were honored at Tuesday morning’s monthly meeting of the Public Safety Commission.
The incident happened earlier this month. On April 4th, Engine 2 and Squad 1 were dispatched to the intersection of New Doris and Kate Streets for a report of a vehicle that crashed off of the roadway that was leaking fuel. While on scene, the DFD crews saw a crowd of people gathering to confront two officers from the Dalton Police Department who were investigating the crash. When people from the crowd assaulted the officers, firefighters from Engine 2 and Squad 1 immediately ran into the crowd and helped the officers restore order and get crowd control. Chief Todd Pangle honored the firefighters with a unit citation, and Chief Cliff Cason from the police department also thanked them for their efforts, noting that his department had also already taken the firefighters to lunch as a thank you.
Receiving the honor were Lt. Jeff Viens, Engineer Anthony Johnston, and Firefighter Cody Manly from Engine 2/A and Firefighter 3 Chance Nelson, Engineer Andy Brock, and Firefighters Michael Sams and Austin Payne from Squad 1/A.
Above (from left to right) Chief Todd Pangle, Firefighter Austin Payne, Firefighter 3 Chance Nelson, Firefighter Cody Manly, Firefighter Michael Sams, Engineer Anthony Johnston, Chief Cliff Cason (the other firefighters honored were unable to attend)
DPD Honors Captain Scott
Also at Tuesday’s meeting, the Dalton Police Department presented the Innovation in Police Services Award to Captain Shaun Scott for his efforts to improve the department’s training program for new officers.
Above: Assistant Chief Chris Crossen and Captain Shaun Scott after the presentation of the award
The award is presented to individuals or small groups who create or employ new innovative strategies or methods to improve the delivery of police services in Dalton. In Captain Scott’s case, he began to study the department’s Field Training Officer program for new officers in which rookie officers are assigned to ride with and be evaluated by veteran mentor officers after they graduate from the academy. Captain Scott studied shortcomings in the program and looked for solutions to fix them. His efforts led to a search for a new program and new software to manage the solution. After selecting a program called Agency 360, Captain Scott led the effort to implement the new program and train officers on how to use it, improving the agency’s training for new officers.
